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Content Marketing

Content Curation

Content Curation: Tools, Techniques, and Tips for Maximal Efficiency

As a content marketer, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when it comes to content. With so much information out there, how can you ensure that you’re curating only the best and most relevant material for your audience? The fluffs and pompous jargon should be left behind, and instead, focus on crafting meaningful content that adds real value to your target audience. To aid in this process, having a set of tools and techniques at your disposal is helpful. In this blog post, we’ll walk you through all the essentials for efficient content curation, including some of the best tools for content curation. You’ll also get insider tips for maximizing efficiency and streamlining your workflow in the content curation process. What is Content Curation? Content curation is discovering, organizing, and sharing relevant and valuable content with a specific audience. You find the most impactful and valuable information within a particular niche or topic, then present it in a cohesive way for your target audience. In the same way a chef carefully selects the ingredients for a dish, content curation involves hand-picking and organizing relevant information and resources for your audience. It’s not just about gathering any random content; it’s about selecting only high-quality, valuable material that adds value to your brand’s narrative. A critical aspect of content curation is adding your unique spin or perspective on the material – it’s not just about reposting and regurgitating information but adding your own insights and value to the content. It follows the proverb that “good artists borrow, great artists steal” – curating content involves borrowing ideas and insights from various sources, then turning it into something new and original. Like many people, don’t make the common mistake of thinking that content curation is the same as content creation. That would be a fallacy. Content curation is the process of finding, organizing, and sharing useful information with your audience. But content creation involves developing original content from scratch – it’s not just about gathering and sharing material but creating your own unique or fresh content ideas and materials. Both are essential aspects of a successful digital marketing strategy. Best Practices for Content Curation To curate content that truly adds value for your audience and not just a run-of-the-mill collection of content, there are specific tips and techniques that will help guide your process. Not only will these tips make your content curation more effective, but they’ll give you an edge over those sharing mediocre content. Set Clear Goals and Objectives No content marketer ventures into content curation without a purpose. Take the time to define your goals and objectives clearly. In other words, before diving into finding content, have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your curation. Your goals must be SMART – specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. This will help guide your content curation process and ensure that the content you share Keep Your Audience in Mind When curating content, always keep your audience in mind. Focus on sharing content that will genuinely add value for them and address their pain points or interests. You need to understand your audience. Know their interest and pain points and then curate content that they will find valuable. Importantly, stay up to date on industry developments and trends. This will help guide your content curation process and ensure that the content you share is relevant and helpful. Choose Quality Over Quantity Getting caught up in the quantity game regarding content curation is easy. But remember, it’s better to share a few high-quality pieces of content than a long list of mediocre ones. Take the time to carefully evaluate each piece before sharing it with your audience. Consider things like relevancy, accuracy, and uniqueness. You can also add your insights or commentary on the content to provide added value for your audience. Share a Variety of Content Types To keep your audience engaged, mix up the type of content you share. This can include blog posts, infographics, videos, podcasts, and more. In addition, make sure to curate content from various sources – not just the big players in your industry. This will add diversity and fresh perspectives to your content curation. Have a Scheduled Time for Content Curation Just like it is with posting your content, consistency is key for curation as well. Set aside a specific week or time to search for and evaluate potential content to share. This will ensure that you consistently provide valuable content for your audience without letting it fall by the wayside. Promote Your Content Your content should also be a part of your curated content mix. This is an excellent opportunity to promote and drive traffic back to your own content and establish yourself as a thought leader with remarkable industry expertise. Just make sure not to do everything right. The focus should still be on providing valuable content from a variety of sources, including your own. Regularly Review Your Performance Regularly review the performance of your content curation efforts. Use analytics and metrics to determine what resonates with your audience and what isn’t. This will allow you to make any necessary adjustments and improve your content curation strategy moving forward. Add Your Own Commentary or Insights Incorporating your insights or commentary on the content can add value for your audience and position you as a thought leader in your industry. Offer your unique perspective on the curated content – add in your thoughts or analysis to add value for your audience. This can also help differentiate your curated content from the rest and make it more memorable. But keep it simple – the focus should still be on sharing valuable content from a variety of sources. Use a Content Curation Tool There are various tools available to make the content curation process easier. This can include social media scheduling and management tools and curated content discovery platforms. Using a tool can streamline the curation process and save you time in the long run.

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Free Press

Help A Reporter Out (HARO): A Guide To Getting Free Press

What would it do for your business’ publicity if you were quoted in a news story in Forbes, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or some other top-tier publication? For many business owners, getting press is a game-changer. It can help you attract potential customers, get more leads and make sales. But how do you get press? If you’re not actively pursuing it, it will probably not hop into your lap and allow you to stroke it like a furry cat. There are a lot of strategies to get some press, but one of the most effective (and easiest) is to simply Help A Reporter Out. Want to know how that works? Well, let’s take a look, What is Help a Reporter Out? Help a Reporter Out, or HARO is a service that connects journalists with news sources who can provide expert information and quotes for stories. Journalists post queries on the HARO website, and sources who have relevant expertise can respond to the query with a quote or comment. If the journalist chooses to use your quote in their story, they will typically include your name and professional description. Plus, they’ll often add a back-link to your website. In addition, you may also be able to link to the story from your website or blog. It’s a great way to get your name and your work in the news, and if used consistently, it’s an effective method of building relationships with journalists. For example, suppose a reporter is writing a story about social media marketing, and you’re a social media expert. In that case, you can respond to their query with a quote or helpful tips. Next time they need a source for a story along similar lines, they’re more likely to think of you and might reach out to you first. Why do Reporters Use HARO? That’s a very interesting question, isn’t it? Reporters, after all, are very good at research and should be able to find experts on their own, right? Well, that’s true. But the thing is, reporters are often on deadlines and frequently juggle many different balls. So while they may know how to find who they need to talk to, they don’t always have the time to track those people down. That’s only a part of it, though. Sometimes, reporters use HARO because they’re looking for a fresh take or a new angle on a story. And let’s face it, even the most seasoned reporter can get burned out sometimes and could use some help generating new ideas. Or, it could just be that the journalist wants to hear from people directly impacted by the topic they’re writing about. Whatever the reason, if you can help a reporter solve a problem, there’s a good chance they’ll want to hear from you. And if you can get some press in the process? Well, that’s what we’re after here, isn’t it? What’s In It for You? If you’re thinking that helping out a reporter sounds like a lot of work with no guarantee of anything in return, you’re not wrong. It can be a lot of work, and there is no guarantee that the reporter will use your quote or mention you in their article. However, if you do get chosen, it’s free publicity for you and your business. Sure, it’s a great feeling to see your name in the news. But there’s more to it, though. In addition to getting your name and website in front of potential new customers, the press can also help expert sources build credibility in your field. People will start to see you as an authority if you’re regularly quoted in the news. They’ll be more likely to visit your website, sign up for your email list, and do business with you. Plus, the SEO rewards down the line can be quite useful. Quality links from HARO can be extremely beneficial for link-building efforts, resulting in increased traffic and higher search engine rankings. In addition, quality links can also lead to more do-follow links, which are links that allow search engines to follow them and count them as votes for your website. This can further improve your website’s authority and reach. Finally, quality links can also help build relationships with other websites and businesses, which can lead to additional opportunities down the road How To Set Up An HARO Account If you’re ready to get started with HARO, the first thing you need to do is set up an account. You can sign up for a free account or a paid subscription. There’s no harm in starting with a free account to see how it goes. If you find that you’re getting good results, you can upgrade to a paid subscription later. To sign up, go to helpareporter.com and input your details. Once you’ve signed up, all you’ve got to do is check your email. You’ll start receiving emails containing anything from 10-100 queries three times at 5:45 AM, 12:45 PM, and 5:45 AM (EST) every day, Monday-Friday. So it’s a good idea to set up a separate email account just for HARO queries so that you don’t miss any and your regular inbox doesn’t get overwhelmed. Alternatively, you can set up a filter in your regular email account so that all the HARO emails go into a separate folder. How To Find Opportunities Now that you’re all signed up and receiving query emails, it’s time to start looking for opportunities. When you open one of the emails, you’ll see a list of queries from reporters. Take some time to read through the queries and see if any of them are a good match for your expertise. If you see one that is great! Go ahead and respond. If not, no worries. Just close the email and move on to the next one. Remember, you don’t have to respond to every query you receive. Just the ones that are a good match for you. One way to narrow

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Content Distribution Matrix

Strategies for Making the Most Out of Your Content Distribution Matrix

As a marketer, you understand that in order to maximize your reach and boost customer engagement, you need a content distribution matrix. But most times, your sweats don’t just measure up to the results you ultimately see. It feels like the content is just floating around in space with no real direction or purpose. “What’s the missing puzzle?”, you might wonder.  Well, if you find yourself in this position, we know one thing for sure – you need an efficient content distribution matrix that specifically works for your business.  In this one-stop guide, you will learn how to identify the most effective channels for your specific audience, create a clear distribution plan, and track results to ensure maximum ROI. Before diving into the various channels, let’s first understand the concept of the distribution matrix. What is a Content Distribution Matrix? Content distribution matrix has to do with the visual representation of where and how your content will be shared. It allows you to outline the different channels and platforms that you’ll use to distribute your content, along with the frequency and timing of these distributions. The concept behind the content distribution matrix is to recognize that certain content types and channels work better for certain audiences. By understanding the specific needs and preferences, you can develop a distribution plan that maximizes reach and engagement. Let’s illustrate.  Say you’re a B2B marketer targeting C-level executives. Your content distribution plan will likely involve LinkedIn and industry-related events instead of a B2C marketer targeting Gen Z on Instagram. So, content distribution matrix helps you prioritize where to focus your efforts and track the success of each platform or content distribution channel. And as a marketer, this can help you plan out their content strategy and allocate resources accordingly. Overall, the idea is to map out the specific content distribution channel that best aligns with your audience and content type rather than randomly posting on every single platform without a clear strategy. Content Distribution Strategy – Step-by-step Process As it is well known, planning is the key to success. The same goes for your content distribution strategy. When you always wish to achieve the most in the content distribution matrix, we recommend you follow these steps. 1. Identify Your Audience Before creating a content distribution matrix, it’s crucial to have a clear understanding of your target audiences. This will help you determine the most effective channels for reaching them. Ask yourself who they are, what their interests are, their demographics, and their pain points. Then, research where they typically hang out online – which social media platforms do they use the most? What kind of websites or publications do they read? Consider conducting audience research through surveys, interviews, and online analytics tools to gather more insight. By understanding your audience, you’ll be able to zero in on the channels that will best reach them. 2. Set Goals/Objectives and Measure Results It’s important to define what you want to achieve with your distribution strategy. Do you intend to increase organic traffic to your website? Generate leads? Improve brand recognition? By having specific goals in mind, it will better guide your decision-making and give you a precise measure of success. In all, your goal must be SMART – specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound. Also, set specific goals for each channel and track your results to see what’s working and what may need improvement. This will help you continually optimize your content distribution plan. Use analytics tools such as Google Analytics or Hootsuite to track and measure metrics such as website traffic, social media engagement, and conversions. 3. Match Content Types with Channels With a clear understanding of your audience and goals in mind, it’s time to determine which content distribution channels will work best for your content distribution strategy. As mentioned earlier, consider where your audience hangs out online, where your competitors are most active, and where your content will perform best. Some options to consider include social media platforms, email marketing, owned websites or blogs, paid advertising, PR outreach, industry publications, and influencer marketing. For example, if you’re a B2B business, LinkedIn may be a better choice for distributing content than Instagram. And if you have visual content, platforms like Pinterest and Instagram may be more suitable than Twitter. You can also consider creating different versions of the same piece of content to cater to various preferences. For example, you could repurpose a blog post into an infographic for visual learners or create a podcast episode for auditory learners. Note that the content distribution channels you eventually choose must align with your overall objectives and target audiences. 4. Plan and Determine the Frequency Next, consider when and how often you’ll distribute your content on each channel. To start, create a content calendar and schedule when you’ll publish new content and when you’ll repurpose or promote older content. This will help keep your distribution plan organized and ensure a consistent flow of content. When determining frequency, consider the platform’s algorithm and what works best for your audience. For example, LinkedIn’s algorithm favors frequent posting, while Instagram tends to favor quality over quantity. Also, consider the peak times when your audience is most active on each channel and schedule your content accordingly. This can greatly impact engagement and reach. 5. Promote and Amplify Your Content Once you’ve outlined your distribution plan, it’s time to get the word out about your content. Consider paid advertising options, such as promoting social media posts or Google ads, to increase visibility and reach a wider audience. Also, consider reaching out to influencers in your industry (“influencer marketing”) who may be willing to share your content with their followers. Additionally, don’t underestimate the power of employee advocacy. Encourage your employees to share company content on their personal social media profiles or reach out to their professional networks via email. This can significantly expand your reach and increase trust in your brand. And finally, make sure you have sharing buttons readily

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Free Content Marketing tools

35 Free Content Marketing Tools That Will Propel Your Business [+Free Template]

There are so many content marketing tools out there that it can take time to know which ones to use. And once you do find a tool or two, it can be tough to keep up with all the new features and updates. It gets even more complicated when you are on a budget, especially if you are just starting as a content marketer or running a small business. Subscriptions for content marketing tools can add up quickly and cut into your budget. We have done the research and here are the best free content marketing tools out there to help you save time and improve your content strategy. These tools have got you covered, from keyword research to social media scheduling. We have grouped these tools into nine categories: research, SEO, creation, curation, graphics design, organization, publishing, analytics/content tracking, and promotion to make it even easier for you to find the perfect tool for your needs. Let’s dive in! Tools for Generating Ideas and Keyword Research 1. WordStream Free Keyword Tool The WordStream Free Keyword Tool is a quick and easy way to find the right keywords for your content. All you need to do is to enter a word or phrase into the tool and get results in seconds. You can use the keyword tool to find new ideas for blog posts, articles, and other types of content. Aside from being completely free, what makes WordStream’s Free Keyword Tool a must-have for content marketers is that it provides keyword suggestions based on the words you have entered. This means you can quickly find related terms and save time from researching them manually. 2. Answer the Public This tool generates questions about your chosen keyword, giving you ideas for FAQs or blog post titles. This tool will be useful for creating content that directly speaks to your audience’s needs and interests. The program is owned by Neil Patel Digital, which offers a Pro version with additional features for $99/month. You can enjoy the free version with up to five hundred thousand searches monthly! 3. Google Trends Google Trends shows how often particular terms are searched for on the internet. This can be useful for understanding what topics resonate with people at any given time, allowing you to adjust your content strategy accordingly and boost your digital marketing. Google Trends is completely free to use, meaning you can save money on other content marketing tools. 4. Portent’s Content Idea Generator This fun tool generates content ideas based on the keyword you input. Simply enter a keyword, and the program will generate a title for a blog post, article, or even an infographic. The idea generator is free, but Portent offers a range of content marketing tools starting at $49/month. Content Marketing Tools for SEO 5. Uber Suggest Uber Suggest is a free keyword research tool created by Neil Patel. This program will generate hundreds of keywords related to your topic based on searches, helping you find the most popular phrases used in your industry. On Uber Suggest, you can also access keyword difficulty to ensure you target keywords with enough search volume but not too much competition. 6. Yoast SEO This plugin is a staple for WordPress users, and it’s free! Yoast SEO helps you optimize your content for the most popular search engine optimization strategies. It also offers an analysis of your content, letting you know what you need to do to make it more SEO-friendly or perform better on search engines. With over five million installations, Yoast SEO is the go-to SEO tool for anyone looking to improve their website’s visibility in search results. 7. Ahrefs This program is renowned for its keyword research capabilities, but it also offers other SEO features like backlink analysis and website audits. Ahrefs has a free version with limited features, but you can upgrade to the paid plan for more advanced tools starting with as low as $20/month. What distinguishes Ahrefs from other SEO tools is its extensive keyword database, which helps you find the best keywords for your content strategy. 8. Backlinko This website is run by Brian Dean, an SEO expert who offers comprehensive advice on all things related to search engine optimization. He shares his knowledge through blog posts and videos, which are free to access. While Backlinko doesn’t offer any tools itself, the information provided can help you understand how to optimize your content for better search engine rankings. 9. Screaming Frog Don’t think frogs can help with content marketing? Think again! This program is a must-have for any SEO strategy – it crawls your website to identify technical issues and provides useful data like broken links, duplicate content, keyword information, missing meta tags, and more. The basic version is free, but if you want access to all the features, you’ll have to sign up for the paid plan at $209/year. Writing and Editing Tools (Content Creation) 10. Hemingway App Hemingway has acquired a fine reputation as one of the best content-creation tools. This tool helps make your writing clear, concise, and easy to read by highlighting unnecessary adverbs, complex phrases, and passive voice. It also gives a readability score to ensure your content is accessible to all audiences. The app uses colors to highlight problem areas and has a desktop version available for purchase at a one time payment of $19.99. 11. Grammarly Grammarly goes beyond your basic spell checker to catch grammar mistakes and spelling errors while offering suggestions for alternative word choices and sentence structure. The free version is available as a browser extension and can be used on various platforms, including Microsoft Word. They also offer a premium version with advanced features for $11.66/month. 12. Google Docs This free word-processing software from Google has many of the same features as Microsoft Word and is accessible from any internet-connected device. Google Docs also makes it easy to collaborate with others in real time, which is perfect for content creation. The many free add-ons available

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SEO Writting

SEO Writing: How to Engage People and Rank Top on Search Engines

Are you looking to skyrocket your SEO rankings, draw in more visitors, and boost conversions? If so, then writing optimized copy is a crucial piece of the puzzle. At its core, SEO writing is all about creating content that’s tailored to rank high in search engines and capture your target reader’s attention. Through the use of relevant keywords and interesting, informative content, you can make your website stand out from the competition and get more search engine traffic. This comprehensive guide will teach you the techniques and best practices you need to become an SEO writing pro.  You will learn how to research and optimize your content effectively, and write compelling copy that draws in readers, boosts your rankings, and maximizes the success of your website.  What is SEO Writing? Search Engine Optimization (“SEO”) is the practice of increasing both the quality and quantity of website traffic by improving rankings in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). When you then combine SEO with writing, you’re creating content that not only engages readers but also has the potential to rank at the top of search engine results. By definition, SEO writing is a specialized form of web content writing that helps your website rank higher on search engines like Google and Bing. To do this, SEO copywriters use targeted keywords (words and phrases commonly searched by people looking for specific products or services) to optimize website content for search engines. In other words, SEO writing improves visibility and organic search results.  This shouldn’t seem surprising to content creators. With the digitization of content, more and more businesses are turning to SEO writing to generate traffic and improve their online presence. So, SEO is vital for driving organic traffic as it has a chance of ranking in Google without you having to pay for ads. Interestingly, SEO generates 1000 times more website traffic than organic social media traffic.  As a result, SEO content writing is one of the most important digital marketing skills you should prioritize for your business growth. Differentiating SEO Writing from Content Writing One of the common problems content writers face is needing to understand the difference between SEO writing and content writing.  It is essential to distinguish the two because they require different approaches and serve distinct purposes. Content writing primarily focuses on creating valuable and informative content for the audience.  You should, however, note that not all content writing necessarily includes SEO tactics. SEO writing specifically focuses on incorporating targeted keywords and phrases to improve search engine rankings without compromising the quality of the writing. In other words, SEO writing is a subset of content writing and should always prioritize providing value to the reader first and foremost. Summarily, both involve writing for a website. The main difference is that SEO content writing considers search engine algorithms and optimization to improve a website’s search rankings. But content writing focuses more on the quality and substance of the writing itself.  Also, content writing includes content for other platforms, including social media while SEO writing is mostly used for websites, including web copies and blog posts, and usually involves the usage of Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools. For example, content writers may write a tweet or Facebook post, while SEO writers typically create content for websites. Why is SEO Writing Important for Businesses? The internet is becoming increasingly competitive for businesses. To stand out from the rest, your content needs to be top-notch. Also, google and other search engines are constantly changing their algorithms, so you must continually adapt your SEO strategy to stay ahead of the curve. “No matter how niche or mainstream your market is, great content remains a significant focus for SEO.” – Kristopher Jones, Founder of LSEO. Generally, SEO writing is vital to help achieve the following: Improves Website’s Ranking on Search Engine Results Pages The main objective of why businesses invest in SEO content is to improve their website’s search engine rankings.  With more visibility on SERPs, people are more likely to click and visit your website, increasing your chances of turning them into customers.  According to recent data, Google processes over 99,000 searches every single second. This makes a total of more than 8.5 billion google searches per day. What this means with effective SEO writing is that there is a massive opportunity for your website to appear as one of the top search results if you’re optimizing content with the targeted keyword phrase. Here, the idea is to create content with the highest probability of being clicked on and appearing at the top of search results. This can be achieved by using targeted keywords, creating valuable and informative content, and incorporating other SEO best practices. In the long run, investing in SEO writing can bring a steady stream of qualified leads to your website.  Drives Website Traffic What’s more? SEO writing also increases your website’s traffic. This means more people visiting and potentially engaging with your content, products, or services. As a result, it can potentially increase your conversions and sales. The interesting thing to note is that the top result on Google’s first page receives nearly 33% of search traffic – meaning that if your website appears in this coveted spot, you can expect a significant amount of traffic. But it’s not just about appearing on the first page; SEO writing can also help increase the click-through rate (i.e., the percentage of people who click on your website after seeing it in search results) of your website. By including compelling titles and meta descriptions (the summary that appears in search results), you can entice internet users to click on your website over the competition. A recent 2022 research shows that opting for higher rankings on Google will increase website traffic. This is because 68.1% of all clicks go to the top three search results. Opting for SEO writing is, therefore, more important than ever if you want your website to be successful. Similarly, by creating engaging content, you can encourage

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Content Audit

Unlocking Success: A Step-by-Step Guide to Executing a Fruitful Content Audit

There’s no question that content is king. It’s your website’s lifeblood, and if you want to succeed online, you must consistently produce high-quality content. But what do you do if you feel your content efforts are falling flat? Or worse, what if you don’t even know where to start? If that sounds like you, then a content audit may be just what the doctor ordered.  Content creation is essential for success, but many don’t realize how much goes into creating effective and engaging content. A successful content strategy requires more than just writing blog posts or articles. It also means understanding your target audience, creating an editorial calendar, and knowing which channels to use to reach your audience most effectively.   Cue in, a content audit.  A content audit is a comprehensive review of all the content on your website (or other channels) to assess its effectiveness and make improvements.  By conducting a content audit, you can get a clear picture of what’s working well and what needs to be improved. You can also identify any gaps in your content, which can help you create a more targeted content strategy going forward.  Not sure where to start? This guide will walk you through everything you need about content audits, from why you should do one to how to conduct your own.  Much Ado About Content “Content” is anything published online. This includes text, images, videos, and infographics. And it’s not just limited to your website. Any time you publish something on social media, blog post comments, or even in an email newsletter, that’s content. The key to success online is creating quality content that resonates with your target audience. That means publishing content that is interesting, informative, and engaging.  It’s not enough to simply publish content for the sake of it. Your goal should be to create content that helps you achieve your business objectives. That might mean generating leads, getting more website visitors, or increasing sales. What is Content Audit, and Why Should You Care? A content audit is a comprehensive review of all the content on your website. It is a thorough analysis of your website content, including both the written content (like blog posts and articles) and the non-written content (like images and videos). Content audits are inventories of your website’s existing content. Once you have a complete list of all your website’s content, you can evaluate each piece individually. Basically, a content audit helps you to identify which pieces of content are working well and which ones need to be improved. It also helps you to plan for future content to ensure that all your content is high-quality and engaging. There are several reasons why you should conduct a content audit. Some common reasons include: Improve Content Quality An SEO content audit will assist you in determining which sections of your content require revision or improvement. This is essential since it ensures that your website’s content is high quality and engaging. During the process of reviewing your website content, you will learn which posts are most popular with readers. This information can help you improve existing content and guide you in developing similar content in the future to attract even more visitors.  Also, you have the opportunity to address other issues, such as fixing any broken links, removing outdated content, and making other necessary improvements to content that is not performing well. Understand Your Audience Better A thorough content audit process will reveal valuable insights into your audience’s needs and preferences. It will help you understand the type of content your audience is most interested in.  By conducting a content audit, you will discover which content your audience is engaging with and why.  The data from this analysis can be incorporated into future content planning to help you produce material that attracts a larger audience and generates more engagement. Assess Content Marketing Strategy An SEO content audit can be performed to evaluate the efficacy of your company’s existing content marketing strategy. By analyzing your content, you can determine what is effective and what is not. Examining metrics like website traffic and conversion rates can give you an idea of how successful a blog post or other content on your website is. This will help you make changes to your strategy if necessary.  Additionally, it will assist you in determining the kinds of material you should publish in the future. Identify Content That Can Be Repurposed It is also a helpful way to find content that can be repurposed or reused in some way. For example, you may find that an old blog post can be updated with new information and republished. Or, you may discover that a piece of web copy can be repurposed as a social media post or email newsletter.  By taking the time to assess your website content carefully, you can ensure that everything works together to achieve your business goals. Improve Search Engine Ranking A content audit is vital in improving your website’s search engine ranking. By auditing your content, you can identify and fix areas that need improvement to help your site rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs).  For example, if your website has a lot of duplicate content, you can fix this issue by rewriting or removing the duplicate content. Additionally, if your website lacks keyword-rich content, you can add new pages or blog posts targeting specific keywords.  Regularly auditing your website’s content ensures that your site is always optimized for search engine ranking. Save Time And Money You save time and money by doing a content audit. This is because while auditing your contents, you will discover ineffective content. Using this data, you can streamline your content production process and put your efforts where they will have the most significant impact. Types of Content Audit There are different kinds of content audits based on the goals of the audit and the way the audit is done.  Full Content Audit A full content audit is a comprehensive review

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Dominate Your Industry With Proven Content Promotion Strategies 

Content creation is not just all there is to succeed with content marketing; content promotion is equally as important. To skyrocket the visibility of your business, you necessarily must utilize the best ways to promote your content and make it stand out from competitors. In fact, a good content promotion strategy can mean the difference between your content getting lost in the noise or reaching new heights and driving serious results for your business. Research has shown that businesses that engage in content promotion strategies achieve 3.5x more traffic than those that don’t. This post provides everything about content promotion, including why it’s important, how to create a solid strategy, which channels and tactics to use, and expert tips from industry leaders. What is Content Promotion? Content promotion is the distribution of content to the right audiences to drive relevant traffic, leads, and sales for your business.  Content promotions put your content in front of the right people (using the right tools and channels) who are likely to engage with it and drive business goals.  Moreover, content promotion is essential for increasing brand visibility, improving your website’s search engine rankings, and eventually driving conversions. Many marketers are leveraging content promotion in a manner that is unprecedented because it has the power to amplify your message, build relationships and extend your reach. In a survey by Hubspot, the majority of marketers (82%) are massively investing in content marketing, 10% don’t use it at all, and the remaining 8% aren’t sure if their company does or not.  This goes to show that content promotion is an important part of any digital marketing strategy. Ultimately, content promotion is an integral part of a successful marketing strategy and can be a game-changer for your business. Why You Should Strategically Promote Your Content  Content promotion is an integral part of any successful digital marketing strategy. Understanding how this is important and why it is necessary can help businesses gain significant traction and reach a larger audience.  Here are some of the reasons why content promotion should be seen as a priority for businesses:  1. Direct Connect With Target Audience With content promotion, you can create a deeper engagement with your audience. In fact, sharing your content through targeted promotion efforts will enable you to connect with specific segments of your audience and tailor your messages to their interests and needs. A study by the Content Marketing Institute found that having a target audience would have a positive impact on content success. To illustrate, if your content is strictly for businesses or professionals (B2B Marketing), LinkedIn will be the platform you should use to reach your target audience and promote your content. What this does is ensure that your content promotion strategy and investment are focused on the right channels, thus resulting in a higher ROI. 2. Builds Trust and Credibility Another incentive for content promotion is that it helps develop credibility and trust for the business brand. A study conducted by Salsify showed that more people are likelier to do business with a business they trust and feel like they can rely on. When the content you promote is of high quality and valuable, people will be more likely to trust you. This way, you can establish your presence and develop a loyal customer base.   3. Drives Traffic and Engagement This is, perhaps, the most obvious benefit of content promotion. Engagement and traffic come from promoting your content on the right channels and getting it in front of the right audience.  Studies have shown that the key to success in content promotion is to create content that resonates with your audience.  When your content is promoted through the right channels, with the right message and targeting, it can drive significant amounts of traffic to your website.  This allows you to reach a larger audience and get more leads, sales, and conversions. 4. Improved Search Engine Rankings and Organic Reach Every business owner desires to rank all content higher in search engines like Google.  Why? Because that’s how they get organic traffic – which means getting traffic without having to pay for it. And one of the benefits of content promotion is that it helps with that. The more people that see and engage with your content, the higher the chances it will rank high. A study found that the majority of website traffic- around 53% – comes from organic search results. With all certainty, organic traffic is some of the best traffic you can get because it’s highly targeted and usually converts very well. 5. Generates Leads and Sales At the end of the day, all businesses want to generate leads and sales. And content promotion can play a major role in that. By promoting your content, you’re exposing it to a larger audience. And the more people see and interact with the content the higher the likelihood of generating leads and sales.  If your ultimate goal is to increase leads and sales, then you need to focus on creating valuable content and position yourself as an expert in your industry. When people see that you’re doing this, they’ll be more likely to trust your brand and do business with it.  According to recent studies by Content Marketing Institute, content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing and generates 3 times as many leads. This means a higher ROI for your business. Platforms That Can Scale Your Content Promotion Efforts Where you eventually choose to promote your content will depend on the type of content, your target audience, and your overall goals.  Here are key platforms and strategies that tend to work well for many businesses in content promotion.  1. Social Media Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc., are great places to start promoting your content. Not only are they free to use, but they also have millions of users. According to recent studies by Statista, there are over 4.59 billion active social media users worldwide. That means there’s a good

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How to succed with affilates

How to Succeed with Affiliate Content Marketing: The Ultimate Guide

Recently, it would seem that everywhere on the internet, there is something about affiliate marketing and how somebody somewhere has made a few thousand dollars from affiliate marketing. This is not so surprising; the global value of the affiliate marketing industry is up to  $17 billion. Affiliate marketing can be a great way to make some extra money on the side or even turn it into a full-time career. However, affiliate marketing is not as easy as it may seem at first glance. You need to do many things correctly to be successful with affiliate marketing, the chief of which is your content. In this guide, you will learn about affiliate marketing basics and how to create effective affiliate marketing content. How Affiliate Content Marketing Works Affiliate content marketing is a form of online marketing where you promote other people’s products or services in return for commissions.  This can be done by creating your own content, such as blog posts, how-to articles, emails, videos, or social media updates, that include affiliate links to the products or services you’re promoting. When someone clicks on one of your affiliate links and makes a purchase, you earn a commission from the sale. Affiliate content marketing is a great way to make money online because it’s relatively easy to start, and you don’t need your products or services to promote. Affiliate marketing is also a very effective way to generate leads and sales for businesses. Affiliate content marketing works as a marketing and advertising model used to generate traffic and affiliate marketing sales from marketing efforts by an affiliate marketer. The business that offers the product and service compensates the marketer with a commission-based fee. Affiliate content marketing involves sharing the responsibility of marketing a product or service between a merchant and a publisher (affiliate). It is a three-way or four-way relationship that involves the product merchant, the affiliate, sometimes an affiliate network, and the consumer.  The product merchant is the business that creates and sells the products or services. The affiliate is the middleman, and the consumer is the end user. The Product Merchant The Product merchant or seller can either be a large enterprise, an SME, or a solo entrepreneur owning the product or service to be marketed. It could either be a physical good or a service or SaaS (Software as a Service).  The merchant sets up the affiliate marketing program but is not involved in the affiliate’s content marketing strategy. The merchant is at liberty to determine the terms and structure of their affiliate program and can reserve certain rights for themselves. The Affiliate Marketer The affiliate marketer agrees to promote the products or services of the merchant in exchange for a commission on each sale they generate. The affiliate is responsible for finding customers and driving traffic to the merchant’s website or landing page. The affiliate uses various marketing channels to promote the merchant’s products or services, such as email marketing, social media, paid advertising, and organic search. The affiliate is typically compensated based on a performance-based model, such as pay-per-click (PPC), pay-per-lead (CPL), or pay-per-sale (CPS). The Consumer The consumer is the end-user of the product or service. The consumer completes the chain of affiliate marketing. They are the ones who will ultimately be making a purchase from the merchant. The consumer is the one who interacts with your blog posts, social media posts, or emails. If they like what you’re promoting, they can use your affiliate link to buy it and earn a commission for the affiliate marketer. However, as a way of regulating the affiliate marketing industry and protecting consumers, the Federal Trade Commission makes it obligatory for affiliate marketers to include a disclaimer that would put the consumer on notice and allow them to make an informed choice. Types of Affiliate Marketing Affiliate marketing can be broken down into three main types: Unattached Affiliate Marketing In this type of affiliate marketing, the affiliate has no connection with the goods or services they promote. They also have no skills or expertise that would make them an authority to review or recommend a product or service. This absolves them of the duty to recommend.  Unattached affiliates generally provide unbiased reviews of a group or type of products and then urge consumers to choose based on the perceived special features of each. Involved Affiliate Marketing In related affiliate marketing, the affiliate promotes products they have used before and are familiar with. The affiliate has personal experience with the product or service and can provide an honest review of it.  Involved affiliate marketers generally provide more in-depth content than unattached affiliates because they want to build trust with their audience by providing valuable information. Their reputation is also directly tied to the product; hence, it is usually easier for consumers to trust their opinions. Related Affiliate Marketing Here, the affiliate marketer has some connection with the product or service in that they are familiar with the industry or operate in the same niche. For example, a project manager can be a related affiliate marketer for a project management software since they know the features and how they can make the work of a project manager easier. Affiliate Marketing Concepts  Affiliate Network Marketing In affiliate network marketing, the affiliate marketer joins an affiliate network. The affiliate network is a platform that provides various affiliate programs from different merchants. The affiliate marketer selects the program(s) they want to promote and signs up for the corresponding affiliate link. The affiliate marketer earns a commission when someone clicks on the affiliate link and makes a purchase. Amazon Associates, ClickBank, and Refersion are some of the top affiliate networks available. Affiliate Marketing Management Affiliate marketing management involves keeping the entire affiliate marketing program running efficiently. Affiliate marketing managers are responsible for finding and signing affiliate partners, tracking affiliate activity, and issuing payments.  Affiliate marketing managers perform the following functions:  Affiliate marketing managers also support affiliates and help them grow their businesses. Affiliate marketing

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content marketing goals

The 8 Content Marketing Goals That Are Critical to Your Business

If you’re running a business, having a content marketing strategy is key to success. Why? Because it helps ensure your content is working towards your overall business goals. Plus, today’s customers are bombarded with choices, and if you want them to pick your product or service, you need to have great content that cuts through the noise.  Not sure where to start? Check out our list of eight goals for any successful content marketing campaign. These tips will help you create content that resonates with your audience and drives conversions. Why Alignment With Content Objectives Is Crucial Here are some benefits of aligning your content marketing campaigns and strategy goals between all relevant stakeholders within the company:  The 8 Critical Goals of Content Marketing Now that we’ve defined content marketing and discussed its importance, let’s dive into our eight critical goals for a successful content marketing strategy. 1. Increase Brand Awareness and Recognition One of the primary goals of content marketing is to increase brand awareness for your business. After all, if people don’t know your company exists, they can’t become customers or clients. Creating high-quality content is one of the best ways to get your name out there and attract the attention of your target audience. Think about the relevant content that will help you achieve these marketing and business goals.  For example, if you’re looking to increase brand awareness for a new product launch, you might create blog posts or social media updates leading up to the launch date. Or, if you want to raise awareness for your business in general, you might create thought-leadership content that showcases your company’s expertise. No matter what type of content you create, you aim to get it in front of as many people as possible. So be sure to promote your content across your channels, from your website and blog to social media and email. You can also use paid advertising to amplify your reach and ensure your target audience sees your content. One company that has successfully used content marketing to increase brand awareness is Coca-Cola. For example, in 2016, they launched their “Taste the Feeling” campaign, which featured a mix of print, TV, digital and out-of-home advertisements. The campaign was designed to underscore people’s emotional connections with Coca-Cola products. This strategy raised brand awareness, as the “Taste the Feeling” campaign garnered over 278 million online views. And it helped Coca-Cola boost its sales by 3% in the first quarter of 2017. By creating high-quality content that resonates with its target audience, Coca-Cola has effectively built awareness for its brand and increased its bottom line. 2. Generate More Qualified Leads Generating leads is an important goal of content marketing. Businesses can attract potential customers and convert them into leads by creating compelling and engaging content. While some customers may immediately commit to a product or service, others may require more nurturing before they are ready to make a purchase. Businesses can develop targeted marketing campaigns to move leads through the sales funnel by collecting data from each interaction with potential customers. Effective content marketing can thus result in increased sales and revenue for businesses. One of the best ways to generate leads is to create gated content, meaning people have to give you their contact information to access it. For example, you might create an eBook or whitepaper and require people to fill out a form with their name and email address before they can download it. You can also use lead magnets, such as free trials or coupons, to entice people to sign up for your email list. Once you have their contact information, you can follow up with targeted emails that will move them further down the sales funnel. 3. Build Brand Loyalty and Trust Fostering brand loyalty is essential for any business that wants to build a lasting relationship with its customers. After all, why would someone continue to buy from a company they don’t trust or feel loyal to? As a content marketer, you have the opportunity to help build both of these things through the stories you tell and the experiences you create. Loyalty is often built through shared values and everyday experiences, so tell stories highlighting these things. For instance, if you’re marketing a sustainable fashion brand, you could tell stories about the people who make the clothing and how they work to reduce their environmental impact. On the other hand, if you’re marketing a new kind of workout gear, you might share stories about how it’s helped people achieve their fitness goals. In both cases, you’re giving your audience a reason to feel loyal to your brand. Trust, on the other hand, is built through transparency and consistency. Be clear about who you are and what you stand for, and be consistent in the messages you share. In addition, with content marketing, your company may host a giveaway or a contest, offering your consumers the opportunity to win a reward and, as a result, celebrate your customer base. Customer loyalty and trust are essential for any business that wants to thrive in the long term. As you achieve this, your audience will come to trust you as a source of reliable information. 4. Garner More Web Traffic With Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Websites are much like storefronts; the better they look, the more likely people will come in. But, of course, there’s a little more to it than that. Just as you wouldn’t put a store in the middle of nowhere, your website also needs to be easy to find. One way to do this is to use search engine optimization (SEO) techniques. SEO involves using keywords and other strategies to improve your site’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). This ensures that your website comes up near the top of the results when people search for keywords related to your business. You can also generate traffic by advertising your website on social media or through pay-per-click ads. And, of course,

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